In this amazing clip of various animals across South America, compiled on July 24, it seems the COVID-19 pandemic forcing a halt to human activity has been a major boon to the wildlife.
A cougar walks the streets of Santiago, in Chile. Crocodiles on the beaches of Mexico. Wild boars stroll through Chile and Argentina. Dolphins swimming off the coast of Brazil. Whales, penguins, and sea lions are much more visible now on the coasts of Argentina. Those were some of the episodes that were recorded since the beginning of the quarantine by Covid-19 in different parts of the world and demonstrate that, when man is absent due to confinement, the animals try to regain their place.
Biodiversity experts assure that while the human is confined in his micro-habitat, it generates an increase in space for the niche of other species to grow.
In addition to the animals, an increasing presence of insects such as moths, bees, and mosquitoes, among others, was evident. In the case of insects, experts say that it is caused by decreased movement, but unlike what happens with animals, it will start to be noticed even more in the long term.
Last April, on the beach of Ventanillas, Oaxaca, some crocodiles were caught in the sea and circulating on the sand. For a month, tourists and fishermen had strayed from this route, which meant the return of the animals to their natural habitat.
In other areas, specimens of endangered animals such as a jaguar, a leatherback turtle, snout, and crocodiles have been seen in the urban area and even in hotels in Cancun and the Riviera Maya, in the Mexican Caribbean.
A few weeks ago in Chile, the image of a wild boar strolling through the streets of Coñaripe in the Los Ríos region, went viral on social media.
Miguel Ángel Valladares, from the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), explained in various media that these episodes are “normal things”, especially in locations near natural parks or reserves. However, I have considered that they are "anecdotes" that demonstrate "that without human influence, nature is recovering its place."
